Journalist now shares update on why Newcastle United didn't pursue Marcus Rashford amid striker shortage

Newcastle United made a couple of sales in the January transfer window but while they weakened their squad it was never on the cards to add any new faces.

It has been seen as a risky strategy by fans and pundits, but the club was always very clear that January was going to be used to trim the squad rather than make any attempts to bulk it up.

However, there were clear gaps in the squad before the sales of Lloyd Kelly and Miguel Almiron.

Jacob Murphy now has no competition on the right wing, and while there are rumours that Callum Wilson is set to return tonight, Alexander Isak is devoid of any kind of reliable backup.

Aston Villa

One player Newcastle may have looked at and was linked by the media was Manchester United misfit Marcus Rashford, who had fallen out of favour under Ruben Amorim.

Thankfully it seems that those rumours were nothing more than just that as Rashford doesn't appear to have his head on right lately and would probably have ended up being more of a liability than an asset.

There's no doubting his talent. For years I'd hoped Newcastle would pursue him, but lately he's a shadow of his former self.

Ultimately, Rashford joined Aston Villa on loan with the Midlands side having a productive transfer window, thanks in part to our owners throwing £67 million at them for Jhon Duran's move to Saudi Arabia.

Journalist Graeme Bailey has spoken to Geordie Boot Boys about Rashford and Newcastle, and, as we suspected, it turns out Newcastle never made a move in his direction.

“I am told there wasn’t any interest in Rashford from Newcastle,” he said.

“I don’t believe it had anything to do with the player’s ability. I don’t think he would have had an interest in a move to the North East. He has gone to Villa and I am not saying they are bigger or that Birmingham is a nicer place to live, but Champions League football is a huge lure.

“I would also point to the fact that I don’t believe Eddie Howe would see Rashford as the archetypal player he would want in his squad.”